Wood-drying apparatus



Nov. 10, 1925- `.1. F. HOPE WOOD DRYING APPARATUS Filed May 26 1925 Patented Nov. 10, 1925.

UNITED STATES JOHN F. Horn, or :KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI.

WOOD-DRYING APPARATUS.

Application md May 26, 1925. Serial No. 32,932.

To all whom t may concern.

Be it knownv that I, JOHN F. Horn, a citizen of the United States, and a residentof Kansas Cit-y, county of Jackson, State of Missouri, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Wood-Drying Apparatus, of which the following is a complete specification.v i

This invention relates'to wood drying apparatus of that class for use inv kilns for drying veneer, boards and the like, and is designed primarily as an improvement on the drying apparatus of United States Letters Patent #1,229,470, April 8, 1919, issued to me as assignee of John T. Hope. It has been found that the structure illustrated in said patent is not wholly satisfactory as the superimposing of one or more groups of racks and material, even thoughthe groups be small, imposes such weight upon the bottom layers of the material that the latte-r in drying is frequently irreparably injure-d through splitting.` It has also been found that in such apparatus, the spacing of small groups of the rack bars from adjacent groups, by means of pins fitted through holes in standards, results in a. considerable waste of time, and that even though'the rack bars are arranged in, small groups and spaced apart by the pins adjacent the standards, the weight of all the groups, at the ppposite ends of the racks, is imposed on the undermost layer of material, as the groups of racks are free to operate pivotally r on the said pins, it being'noted also that because the groups are definitely spaced apart adjacent the standards-and not at their oppositeA ends, the material is not subjected to uniform pressure by the superposed layers of material and racks, as desirable.

wMy object is to provide a. construction wherein the racks for spacing the layers of material apart, shall be supported at both sides of the layers and independently thereof sothat each layer shall sustain no more weight than that of the rack next above, and not even the weight o-f'that if the material is perfect-ly fiat, and its thickness is equal to the spaces between the underlying and overlying racks, and in vany event shall be subjected to a'substantially uniform pressure which is not suicient yto prevent warped material flattening out without splitting, as occ-urs frequently WhereV the weight `sustained is excessive,

ure1.

A further object is to provide fork automatically effecting uniform spacing between the racks, and where the racks are relatively large and cumbersome, that lvis rwhere they are in the form o-f rectangular gratings, making provision whereby one man can easily handle them with celerity in both the loading of'green and the unloading ofV cured material.

With these objects in view, the invention consists yin certain novel and useful features-of construction and combinations of partsV as hereinafter described and claimed; 5

away, and showing certainracks in hori'- zontalor operative position and others in tilted or inoperative position.

Figure 3 is an enlarged cross section yon the line IH--III of Fig- *Inthesaid drawing,` 1 indicatesatruck j szo fragmentary drying kiln, not shown. The truck is preferably ,of skeleton construct-ion of requisite strength but of minimum weight.

The truck 1s provided at what may `be termed its rear side with two or more stiff vertical-standards 4, having iny their front edges vertical series ofl downwardly and rearwardly inclined equi-spaced notches 5, corresponding notches ofthe standards being in the same horizontal planes. Rigid with the said standards and facing rearwardly are flanges 6 provided with vertical series of teeth V'.7 j spaced apart correspondingly with notches 5,and in substantially the lsame horizontalplanes, upper rear corners of the teethbeing out awayV at.8, to form'low'er lguide-waysto the, rear`wardly-opening notchesv 8 betweensuch teeth., ,Y

Aseries of racks isl provided for use with thereof asjshallbe necessary to .includeat least an adjacent pair of standards` as shown l .fory ,examplel by V,Figure 1.A The racks'farey Y ofdskeleton rectangular form Yand all 'arefpf of rectangular form, mounted on wheels 2 .5

engaging tracks leading to and from a and ofarea yto cover theftruck or as/ Inuch` identical construction except the base or bottom one 9, which rests flatly upon the truck, and is recessed at 10, in its front and rear ends, to provide depending portions 1l to bear against the front and rear walls of the truck and thus prevent edgewise movement or shifting of such rack` asl the material to be drie-d is shoved or placed upon it or as its rear edge is utilized as 'a :tulcrum in the manipulation of the undermost of the shiftable. racks 12, it being noted that all of the racks-have pairs of cross bars 18 fitting at opposite sides of the standards, which inhibit shifting movementtoward either's'ide of the truck. Each shiftable rack 12 has two pins 14 and 15 respectively, bridging the space between its bars 13 a little forward of the middle of the rack and near the rea-r side thereof, the pins being. at opposite sides of the standards so that pins lll may engage notches 5 and pins 15 the teeth 7. When pins ltengage notches 5 the corresponding rack is in tilted or inoperative position. Nhen the pins 15 rest Vupon teeth 7 and. therack is fully lowered on said pins as a pivotal point, thev depending lugs 16 on the front wall of the rack, rest upon the underlyinghorizontal rack, each rack occupies a` horizontal position because the relative position oi? the supporting teeth 7 and the depth oit the lugs 16 is such as to providek this result and thereby insure a uniform spacing between adjacent racks, which. spacing is that suitable to accommodate the thickness of' the material most commonly dried by the apparatus, and which is liable vto injury in dryingif required to sustain excessive weight. It heavy theupper surface ofthe rack has no projections to interfere-with proper 'horizontal'2 and therefore stable stacking.

thereby properly accommodates stockor material S of uniform thickness. The' length l of the stock is unimportantprovidfed itvdoes notproject beyond thesides `of the truck, as in such case the projecting ends would have uodirect support.

. In'practice raw/stock is placed in'asingle layer on Athe bottom rack', the shiftable racks l 12"at 'such time being'fdisposed in the tilted position mentioned.A The .underm'ost of such racks is then drawinforwar-d untill its pins 15 engage the lowest notches 8*'andv 'it 4is then rlliis being true,y Vthe spacing between the racks is uniform'and is then moved on the tracks into a suitable lriln and after the stock is cured, the truck is moved out, and the loading operationk de'- scribed is reversed',y that is the shittable racks beginning with the topmost, are. slid bacl until the` pins 1.4 engage the respective notches 5 and the rack is supported intilted position, by bearing upon the reark end of the underlying horizontal rack or part, the layers ot cured stock being removed'as isuccessively exposed by the adjustment of the overlying racks to tilted or inoperativepo'sition. f

From the a-bovedescription, it will be apparent that I have produced apparatus embodying the features of advantage set forth as desirable inthe statement ofI the object of theinvention, andy which issusceptible of some modiiic'ation Within the spirit and scope ofthe appended claims.

l claim:

1. The combination of al movable .support, a 'set of standards rising fromthereai' part of the support and' providedat their rear edlges with spaced notches, and aseries of superpo'se'd rectangular skeleton racls uponthe movable support, each/rack having parallel bars litting at; oppositesi'd'es of the'v standards,- an'd its rear' sidey fitting in horizontally alinedl notches off-thelfstandards. i

2. The'combination 'et a movables'uppo'rt, afset of standardsrising. 'from' ther rear part of thesupporty andl prov-ide'dj at their' rear edges with spaced' notches, and a4 seriesf of superposed rectangularfslreleton racks'V upon the movable support, each rack `having paralleli bars iittin'gA atV opposite sides 4ofthe standards, and its rearl side v adaptedl to tit in horizontally alined notchesV oii'the' standards7 and being'slidable upwardly and'b'ackand-forth on the standards: andY tiltable downwardly and rearwardly when slid back, to rest upon the underlying rack.

3. The combination 'otra movable support, a set otv standards rising' from thel rear part of the support and provided at their rear edges with spaced notches,` and a; series of superpos'ed rectangular. skeleton racks upon the' movable support, each .rack having parallel bars iitting at opposite `sides of the standards, andit's rear side: adapted to lit in horizontallyv alinednotch'es of' the standards, an'dbeing'l slidablei upwardly and back-and-forth on the standards"andftiltable downwardly and rearwardly when slid back, to rest upon the underlying rack, and having means to engage the standards pivotally as a fulcrum for the tilting and a limitfor the rearward movement of the rack.

4C. The combination of a movable support, a set of standards rising from the rear part of the support and provided at their rear edges with spaced notches, and a series of superposed rectangular skeleton racks upon the movable support, each rack having parallel bars fitting at opposite sides of the standards, and its rear side adapted to lit in horizontally alined notches of the standards and being slidable upwardly and backand-forth on the standards and tiltable downwardly and rearwardly when slid back, to rest upon the underlying rack; the front edges of the standards having downwardly and rearwardly sloping notches, and the gagement lwith the standards and support to hold the racks spaced uniformly apart when in horizontal position.

6. The combination of a -movable support,

a set of standards rising from the rear part ofthe supportand provided at` their rear edges with spaced teeth, and a series of sufperposed racks carried by the support and slidable back-and-forth and tiltable upon the standards, and having cross pins for resting upon respective teeth ofthe standards and depending lugs for engaging the upper sides of respectively underlying racks, for the support of the racks horizontally and uniformly spaced.

7. The combination of a movable rectangular support, a series of standards .risingy from the rear part of the support, a rack fitting over the standards and resting horizontally on `the support and having portions depending therein and engaging the front and back thereof to inhibit forward and.

backward shifting movement, a series of superposed racks fit-ting over the standards,

and means for spacing the racks uniformly apart in Vhorizontal position over the support. p

`In witness whereof I hereuntoy affix my signature.

JOHN F. HOPE. I 

